On January 21, 1959, Switzer arrived at Moses "Bud" Stiltz's home in Mission Hills, California, to settle an alleged debt owed to Switzer. Previously, Switzer had borrowed a dog from Stiltz which was lost, but eventually found, Switzer paying the man who returned the dog $50. Switzer went to Stiltz's house to collect the money "owed" him. He banged on Stiltz's front door, demanding that he let him in, flashing a fake police badge. Once Switzer got inside he and Stiltz got into an argument. Switzer informed Stiltz that he wanted the money he owed him. But when Stiltz refused to hand over the money the two engaged in a physical fight. Switzer bashed Stiltz in the head with a lamp, which caused Stiltz to bleed from his left eye. Stiltz retreated to his bedroom and returned holding a gun, but Switzer immediately grabbed the gun away from Stiltz, which resulted in a shot being fired but neither man being hit. Then Switzer forced Stiltz into a closet, despite Stiltz having gotten his hands back on the gun. Switzer then allegedly pulled out a knife and was attempting to stab Stiltz with it. But just as Switzer was about to charge Stiltz, Stiltz raised the gun and shot Switzer in the chest. Switzer died of intense blood loss while on his way to the hospital. He was 31 years old.

The killing was held to be a justifiable homicide. Switzer had allegedly pulled a knife; therefore, the shooting was judged to be self-defense. During the trial regarding Switzer's death, it was revealed that what was originally reported as a "hunting knife" was in fact a jack knife. It had been found by crime scene investigators under his body, but with no blade exposed. Switzer's death was largely ignored in the media, mainly because director Cecil B. DeMille had died on the same day.

Switzer's country-boy sense of earthy humor could often be cruel. He enjoyed playing tricks on his fellow cast and crew members. One incident occurred when he put fishing hooks in the pants of George "Spanky" McFarland and Spanky suffered severe cuts that resulted in his receiving stitches. Switzer tricked Darla Hood into putting her hand in his pocket, telling her he had a ring for her, but in reality it was a switchblade knife. Darla almost lost her fingers from that incident. After Hal Roach sold the series to Metro-Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) in 1938, the now-adolescent Switzer's behavior was even more extreme. He often sabotaged the production of Our Gang films. Once, during a break in filming, Switzer urinated on the set's lights. When filming resumed, the lights heated up and filled the set with such a stench that filming had to be halted for the rest of the day. On another occasion, he put chewing gum inside one of the cameras. <2>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Switzer

Darla was busy organizing a 1980 Little Rascals reunion for the Los Angeles Chapter of The Sons of the Desert (the international Laurel and Hardy appreciation society) when she underwent minor surgery at a North Hollywood hospital. Following the procedure, Darla contracted acute hepatitis under suspicious circumstances and died suddenly on June 13, 1979. She was only 47.

There was no joy or luck in that club, fer sure. They either died broke, accidentally, homicided or diseased. All before their times. Weezer was killed during a flying exercise. Chubby died of heart failure (due to a glandular ailment that fluctuated his weight from 300 to 140 pounds) at the age of 18. Stymie was a heroin addict. Switzer was a gambler with a taste for alcohol before he was murdered. Froggie got hit by a truck delivering papers at the age of 16 and died. Waldo was killed in a hit-and-run accident in 2002.

It's just like Danny Bonaduce said - "Most child actors were lucky enough to get the part in the first place. They cry and complain that now they are no longer little and cute Hollywood has no use for them. What we often fail to appreciate is that being little and cute may have been their only skill. Now that we are not so little anymore, and certainly not cute, some of us may have to face reality, stop whining, and get real jobs."

Our Gang really did set the trend for the Hollywood practice of chewing up and spitting out it's young in droves.

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